CINDERFORD Town hosted Yate Town at the Causeway in a closely contested GFA Senior Challenge Cup match that finished goalless, with the Foresters triumphing in a penalty shootout.

The game started quietly, with neither side troubling the goalkeepers in the first ten minutes. Cinderford made an early substitution in the 26th minute, with Preston Mason replacing Lenny Thompson.

The match came alive in the latter stages of the first half. Yate Town had a promising chance in the 34th minute when Theo Jeremy’s cross found James Byrne, but Byrne’s deflected shot drifted just wide. Four minutes later, Cinderford nearly broke the deadlock as Alex Bonthron flicked on a long ball to Isaac Richards, whose effort narrowly missed the post.

Bonthron came close again in the 39th minute, finding space in the penalty area, but his shot was deflected over the bar. Yate had the final opportunity of the half when Will Christopher fired a speculative effort wide from outside the box.

The teams went into halftime deadlocked at 0-0.

Cinderford’s goalkeeper Joel Manning was called into action immediately after the restart, producing a superb save to tip a Yate effort over the bar. Manning was again the hero in the 53rd minute, parrying a powerful free-kick from Ross Stearn to keep the scores level.

Isaac Richards looked lively for the hosts, intercepting the ball and driving toward goal in the 56th minute, but his shot failed to hit the target. Moments later, Cinderford made a double substitution, introducing Josh Jones and Blaine Waugh in search of a breakthrough.

The Foresters came agonisingly close in the 69th minute when Alex Bonthron’s free-kick grazed past the top corner. Josh Jones also tried his luck from long range following a poor clearance by Yate’s goalkeeper Aaron Sainsbury but sent his shot just over the bar.

Despite their best efforts, neither side could find the elusive goal. Cinderford made two late changes, bringing on Alex Knight and Mike Symons in the final minutes, but the match remained goalless at full time, setting up a penalty shootout to decide the winner.

The shootout began with Yate converting their first penalty, but Alex Bonthron responded confidently to level the scores. Both sides kept their nerve, with Yate’s goalkeeper Aaron Sainsbury even stepping up to score his penalty. Mike Symons calmly slotted his effort to keep Cinderford in contention.

As the tension rose, Yate’s Ross Stearn converted, but Joe Keeping responded with a perfectly executed Panenka. The turning point came when Yate’s Will Christopher missed, handing Cinderford the advantage.

Josh Jones stepped up and blasted his penalty into the net, putting the Foresters 4-3 ahead and leaving Yate needing to score to stay in the game. Joel Manning, who had been outstanding throughout the match, produced a brilliant save to deny Yate’s final taker, sealing victory for Cinderford.

The Foresters celebrated a hard-earned victory, showing both resilience during the match and composure in the shootout. The result secures their place in the GFA Senior Challenge Cup semi-finals.